AN exhibition of proposals to develop the former DERA site in Longcross will go on view to the public next week.

People living in the area have expressed fears about the wider impact of the plans for the northernmost part of the site, in Chobham Lane, north of the M3.

The display at DERA site’s visitors’ centre from Thursday June 28 until Saturday 30 will relate to a more than 40-hectare chunk of the 129-hectare site near Virginia Water.

Runnymede Borough Coun-cil agreed to remove the site’s green belt status in February to allow mixed development, including up to 2,500 homes earmarked across the whole site, to meet required housing targets.

Joint owners Crest Nicholson and Aviva Investors have planning permission for a development of 1.2 million square feet, including one million sq ft of offices on the site. They are putting forward updated proposals designed to better meet employment and housing needs in the area.

The office space is being reduced, with around 200 homes included in the improved scheme. The plans will also open up as public green space large parts of previously inaccessible land.

Joan Clark, of Trotsworth Court, Virginia Water, said: “The development is going to have a really wide impact on the area.

“People will be coming into Virginia Water and Sunningdale. There have been attempts to get a new supermarket built in Virginia Water, which I am against. This might mean there is more chance it would get permission.”

Debbie Schulz, manager at Virginia Water Community Pre-School, said a leaflet about the exhibition had come through her door.

She added: “To have an exhibition so we can see what they are planning is a good idea. I have heard rumours about what the plans are so it will be good to see what they actually are.”

A spokesman for Aviva Investors and Crest Nicholson, Chris Tinker, said: “These new proposals for the DERA site are designed to improve on the office-only scheme which already has planning consent, in order to create a more attractive and sustainable approach with offices, homes and community space for workers and residents.

“We’re eager to gain as much feedback from this consultation as possible, to ensure that the development reflects the needs of the community.”

The site has been a major employment location for more than 60 years. It was initially established for tank design and development. The majority of buildings on site are now in a state of disrepair.

At the exhibition, residents and stakeholder groups will be able to see the plans in detail, talk directly with the development team and offer feedback on the proposals.

James Osbourn, of the Chobham Society, said the group was keen to see the plans and assess any impact the proposed development could have on neighbouring villages and nearby Chobham Common.

He said: “The impact on the villages of all these cars is going to be enormous – and the impact on the common.

“Until we have seen the exhibition, that is our fear. It ought to be dealt with comprehensively. They should be looking at both sites together. To look at one site in isolation is wrong.”

The exhibition will be open from 11am to 8pm on Thursday, 11am until 6pm on Friday and 11am to 4pm on Saturday.